Choker hook



July 29, 1952 w. A. MEIGHAN 2,605,130

CHOKER HOOK Original Filed April 19, 1948 IN V EN TOR.

' Willyfam 14M@- han B n .N @H

Patented July 29, 1952 UNITED ySTATES PATENT oFFic CHOKER HOOK William A. Meighan, Oswego, Oreg.

Original application April 19, 1948, Serial No. 21,825. Divided and this application May 16, 1951, Serial No. 226,639

This invention relates to a choker hook for use with a wire choker rope in detachably but positively holding a bundle of logs, pulp wood lengths, pieces of cord wood,` and the like while such bundle is in transit. More particularly, this invention is a division of my copending application Serial No. 21,825, filed April 19,1948, and entitled Bundling Choker.

In the logging lndustry, where my invention is mostfwidely used, choker ropes are used to drag logs or felled trees from the forest to a waterway or other convenient site from which the logs are transported to the mill. These ropes are necessarily large in diameter and are usually constructed of a number of wires wovenl into the form of a heavy cable to provide adequate strength. Accordingly, they are very stiff and resist bending. This stiffness results in considerable diiiiculty being experienced in the formation of knots or other attaching manipulations such as the attachment of terminal fittings and choker hooks. I-Ieretofore, .the difficulty has been overcome or avoided by attaching closed loops or ferrules to the end of the wire rope with a clamp, solder, babbit. or the like. Such loops or ferrules serve as means for attaching the end of the rope to a hook or other device slidably mounted on the rope. It has been my experience that this procedure and thisattachment structure necessitate the use of special equipment which must be available at the logging site, On the other hand, even though these fastening means are provided, they do not afford a positive grip for securing and holding a bundle of logs or lengths of pulp wood. Instead,'these fastening means are limited in their use to the hauling of one log or timber at a time.

The limited usefulness of the present-day fastening means is a disadvantage which is amplied by modern logging operations. Thus, the sharp decline in the quantity of vavailable timber has made necessary the salvage of cord wood, pulp logs, second-growth timber and watersoaked lengths. These secondary or short length wood pieces are of use in the manufacture of paper pulp, cardboard pulp, wallboard, and other commodities made from ground or debered woods. Economic and profit factors, however, prohibit handling of such wood in individual pieces, and the choker ropes heretofore employed are incapable of positively securing and maintaining a bundle of such wood pieces in compact form during thelogging and freighting operations. This is because the choker ropes maintain a relatively firm hold on thelogs only while sufiicient tension is maintained upon the Y 9 Claims. (Cl. 294-75) drag line secured to the choker loop. Also, when a bundle of logs is being dragged over the ground, any relaxation in the tension of the line immediately loosens the grip of the choker and some of the logs may slip away from the bundle or the entire bundle may become disarranged. Moreover, the hold on the bundle of logs is relaxed when the drag line is removed even if a bundle is successfully hauled from the forest and loaded upon freight cars, logging trucks, or a Waterway.

Having in mind the above outlined disadvantages, it is a principal object of my invention to provide a choker hook which will grip both the end and an intermediate portion of a rope in such a manner that the gripping hold will not be relaxed except after a positive manual manipulation thereof.

Another important object of my invention is to provide cooperating jaws for a choker hook, which jaws are arranged to receive an intermediate section of the choker rope and to resist movement of said rope in the direction producing increase in the size of the choker loop until and unless positive disengagement is effected.

A further object of my invention is to provide a choker hook in which release of an intermediate section of the rope is accomplished by the conscious manual movement of a stepped vpin having different effective diameters.

Other objects and advantages of my present invention will be hereinafter described with reference to the following detailed description, taken in connectionY with the accompanying drawings, in which: y

Fig. 1 is a front view of a choker hook embody ving the features of the instant invention and showing a wire rope engaged at one end in the rope coupling means thereof and, atan intermediate portion, between the saddle and shoe thereof; and y Fig. 2 is a fragmentary side view ofthe rchoker hook of Fig. 1, indicating', by dashed lines, the position to which one of the links may be pivoted to relax the grip of the saddle upon the intermediate portion of a wire rope.

In Fig. 1 of the drawings, `I have shown an elongated body member l having rope coupling means 2 at one end thereof and a gripping shoe 3 at the other end thereof. The rope coupling means 2 includes an offset member `4 provided with a centrally arranged eye 5. In addition, a

pair of axially aligned tunnels 6 andan aperture I are formed intermediate the ends vofsaid body member. Preferably, this entire structure is cast from iron or steel to provideeastrength commensurate with the use of the choker hook in a logging operation.

To secure a rope such as the illustrated cable 8 to the coupling means 2, one end of said rope first is threaded through the Veye 5. end of the rope is threaded rearwardly through the aperture I and is exed upwardly behind itself to lie ina lateral`plane across the tops of the aligned-tunnel 6 as shown in Fig. 1.` The rope is then bent back upon itself and threaded through 1 the aligned tunnels B. This type of knot and the procedure for forming it is more fully described in my United States Patent No. 2,240,510, issued May 6, 1941, and entitled Logging Choker and Fittings Therefor. It is to be noted, however, that any rope coupling means Vof conventional type may be utilized in place of that illustrated at 2 since the details of the present invention do not depend for novelty upon the manner in which the end of the rope is secured to the choker hook.

f Referring more n particularly to the inventive details of the choker hook, I have shown a rst pivot Ameans or pivot lug 9 and a second pivot means or bearing flange I carried on the opposite sides'of said body Ymember I. Above the pivot lug-9 vandto either side thereof are spaced flanges IIa and IIbl also projectingV from the side of the body member I. As shown in Fig. 1, the left flange IIa is provided with an elongated slot I2 and the right flange IIb is provided with a reduced slot I3. Slidable laterally within these slots I2 and I3, I have shown a stepped pin Ill having an enlarged end IE-and a reduced end I6. Each end of the pin Id is provided with a shoulder stop II`and`the reduced end I6 is drilled as at I8. The drilled hole I8 accommodates a piece of wire or a cotter key I9 to dene a removable keeper member for locking the pin I4 against movement.

' As best shown in Fig. 2, I have provided a U- shaped grip member 2B having two legs or link members 2I and 22 joined by a saddle portion 23. The saddle portion 23' is joined, at the ends thereof, to the two links 2l' andY 22 by'the pivot connections 24. Inaddition,v theV right link 2| (see Fig. 2). is mounted pivotally on the bearing .flange I0, as at 25, and the left link 22 overrides the pivot lug 9 similarly torarticulate this left link. Thus, the links 2l andA 22 and the saddle portion 23 are carried for pivotal movement about the lateral axis X (see Fig. 2) between an open position in which the saddle 23 is spaced from the shoe 3 and a rope grip position in which the saddle 23 closely overlies the shoe 3.

Turning now to the stepped pinV I4, two operay tive positionsth'ereforfhave been shown in Fig. 1. In the full line position, the enlarged end vI straddles and overlies the-tcp portion of the left link 22 to hold thislinkagainst the lateral` movement yet to permit the aforementioned pivotal movement about the lateral axis X. Inthe dashed line position of Fig. 1, the reduced end I5 overlies the left link 22 to release this link for pivotal movement about the lateral axis Yto the dashed line position of Fig.. `2. Thus, the wire I9 serves as a keeper member to prevent Ainadvertant or premature displacement of the pin III.L

In operation, the end of the choker rope I8 is secured to the choker hook, as by the rope coupling means 2, and the rope is looped about a bundle of logs or lengths of cord or pulp wood. With the stepped pin I4 in the locked position and the wire keeper I9 affixed as shown in Fig. 1, the saddle`23 is rotated about the lateral axis X away Thereafter, this from the gripping shoe 3 sufficiently to thread the rope end through the space thus defined to introduce an intermediate section of the rope 8 into the saddle. V'I'he free end of the rope is then secured to a drag line or a come-along in conventional manner. As the drag line exerts a pull upon the rope 8 in the direction of the arrow 26, the diameter of the rope loop encompassing the bundle of logs thereby is decreased. Y

As the pull onw theffclrag4 line continues, the articles are brought intov a'compact bundle and further closing of the choker rope loop is prevented. At this time, the pressure exerted by the drag line upon the rope 8 pivots the saddle 23 and the links 2I and 22 about the lateral axis X into the rope gripping position shown in Fig. 1. Thus, the intermediate portion of the rope 8 frictionally is gripped between the saddle 23 and the shoe 3'to retain the bundle of logs in compact form. Moreover, by providing a sharply curved receiving end 21 upon the saddle 23, a sharp, but not a shearing, bend in the rope is formed. This sharp bend` greatly increases the holding power of the clampY and preventsthe bundlefrom coming loose. In fact, the more tightly thelogs Yare bundled, the tighter my choker hook will vhold them 'even after the drag line is backed off .or is released. f Y

If the bundle thus secured is logs, it thereafter will be hauled from the forest to a shipping site and the tension of the drag line will. be released. At this point, it should be apparent that no tension need be maintained' uponfthefree endofthe choker rope since the' outwardl pressure of the bundle maintains the vclafnfip in positive gripping position. The bundle thus formedmay be kloaded upon a truck or freightcar, or it may be Ydischarged into a waterway: forg'transport to' the mill for processing. I' 'K y At the mill or when it =-isj desired'V toY release the bundle, the keeper` wire I9 vis removed fromthe drilled hole I8 in theY reduced fendA ofv the'jpin. Thereafter, a workman appliesa lsharp j'blow 'with a hammer upon the smalll shouldered'fend ofthe pin at I'I. VThis blow drives the pin from the full line the Vdashed line position shown in Fig. 1. Almost instantaneously, the left link 22 is released forY pivotal movement about the lateral Yaxis Y andthe saddle 23 will springawayfrorn'the rope 8 to release the same.,` The, choker hook is then withdrawn from about thebundle and' returned to the logging site forv further use.

It will now be' seen that. I have served -my inventive. objects by ...providing a lchoker hook kin which the saddle portion thereofismounted .for selective pivotal movement aboutja lateralv axis between two different positions; In. the first such position, the saddle isfin; close proximity to the shoe to define a rope grippingpositionY therewith. In the second such'positiiongrthe saddle is spaced from the shoe -outfofiropegrippingj'relationship therewith'.` vAdoIitiolljally;` I' have provided a stepped Vpin which vis Vn'xovable laterally to release one ofthe links,` for.' pivotal movement about a second lateral axisperpendicularIto the first lateral axis. This:secondnpivotaimovement freesv `the saddle andijchoker rope: ."Ihus'r my choker hook is. easily releasedwhend'esired yet a positive. consciousl eifo'rtf fis :i'eziuired to. l'eect such'a release. l" l 5i" Iclainl:Y W 1. A ychokerl heck, .comprising an elongated body having rope coupling means atone-end thereof. a saddle means joinedpivotall bodyintermediate the-.endstof A.the latter,`

cam-shaped shoe vfixed to the` lother?endof jrsaid body, said yshoe lyingv "within saidsaddlef-"and cooperating therewith to engager a rope in .one operative position, said saddle being pivotable selectively about an axis to two different .positions Vin one of which it is in close proximity to said shoe in a ropel gripping relationship therewith and in the other of which it is spaced from said shoe out of rope gripping relationship therewith, a movable pin means carried by and extending laterally of said body to define a portion of the pivotal joining connection between said body and saddle, said pin means being movable independently ofv said saddle lpivotal movements to relax said rope gripping relationship, said saddle means including a pair of articulated links one of which is joined pivotally to each side of said body, said pin means overlying one end of one of said links when said saddle defines said rope gripping relationship and being spaced from said one end when said rope gripping relationship is relaxed 2. A choker hook,` comprising an elongated body member carrying coupling means at one end and agripping shoe at the other end, a U-,shaped grip member havin-g twov leg portions joined'by a saddle portion arranged selectively to overlie said shoe, pivot means carried on opposite sides of said body and defining a rst lateral pivot axis, each said leg portion being joined to one of said pivot means, said saddle portion thereby being carried for pivotal movement about said first axis between an open position spaced from said shoe and a grip position closely overlying said shoe, and movable pin means operatively carried by said body member and bearing on one of said leg portions selectively to release said grip member for pivotal movement about a second lateral pivot axis perpendicular to said iirst lateral pivot axis.

A3. A choker hook, comprising an elongated body member carrying coupling means at one end and a lgripping shoe at the other end, a U- shaped grip member having two leg portions joined pivotally by a saddle portion arranged selectively to overlie said shoe, ilrst and second pivot means aligned on opposite sides of said body intermediate the ends thereof to define a rst lateral pivot axis, each said leg portion being joined to one of said pivot means, said saddle portion being carried for pivotal movement about said rst axis between an open position spaced from said shoe and a grip position closely overlying said shoe, and movable pin means operatively carried by said body member for movement relative thereto and bearing on one of said leg portions selectively to release said grip member for pivotal movement about a second lateral pivot axis perpendicular to said first lateral pivot axis, said pin means including a stepped pin movable from a position astraddle said one leg portion to a release position out of contact with said leg portion.

4. A choker hook, comprising an elongated body member carrying rope coupling means at one end for securing the end of a rope thereto, a rope gripping shoe carried adjacent the other end of said body member, a U-shaped grip member having a saddle joined pivotally to said body for cooperation with said shoe, said grip member being mounted for pivotal movement about a lateral pivot axis between two positions, said saddle being spaced from said shoe in one position and closely overlying said shoe in a second position to grip an intermediate portion of said rope between said shoe and saddle, and movable means operatively carried by said body member and releasable bearing on said grip member to relax said saddle from said second position and release said intermediaterope portion, said latter means includingv ast'epped pin movable laterally ina direction perpendicular to said lateral pivot axis. v .5. A choker hook, comprising an elongated body member carrying rope coupling means. at one end thereof forv securing the.` end ofa 'rope thereto, a rope. gripping. shoe, carried :adj acent` the other end of saidbody membenra U-shaped grip member joined pivotally to said bodyand having two leg portions joined by atsaddle portion, said grip member being mountedzfor' pivotal4 movement about a laterall pivot axis between .two positions in cooperation with said shoe, said saddle being spacedlaterally. from .said shoe in one position and being-closely adjacent said shoe in a second position .to grip an intermediate portion of said rope between said shoe and saddle, and movable pin means operatively carried by said body member for movement, relative thereto and releasable bearing on one of said leg portions to relax said saddle from said second position and release said intermediate rope portion, said `pin means includinga steppedv pin'movable laterally in a-direcf` tion perpendiculartol said lateral pivot axis in response to a conscious manual blow thereupon.

6. A choker hook, comprising an elongated body having coupling means at one end and a gripping shoe at the other end, a pair of link means disposed one on each side of said body and mounted for pivotal movement about a common lateral axis, a saddle member companion to said shoe and carried by said links for pivotal movement therewith between an open position spaced from said shoe and a grip position closely adjacent thereto, and movable means operatively carried by said elongated body for releasing one of said links for pivotal movement about a second lateral axis perpendicular to said common lateral axis.

7. A choker hook, comprising an elongated body having rope coupling means at one end and a rope gripping shoe at the other end, a pair of link means disposed one on each side of said other end of said body and mounted for pivotal movement about a common lateral axis, a saddle member companion to said shoe and carried by said links for pivotal movement therewith between an open position spaced from said shoe and a rope grip position closely adjacent thereto, and movable pin means operatively carried by said body for movement relative thereto and to release one of said links for pivotal movement about a second lateral axis perpendicular to said common lateral axis, said pin means including a removable keeper selectively for locking said pin against movement.

8. A choker hook comprising, in combination, an elongated body, a choker rope coupling means angularly disposed on one end of said body, rope gripping shoe means on the opposite end of said body, a saddle member companion to said shoe for slidably receiving an intermediate section of choker rope, means pivotally securing one end of said saddle member to one side of said body, a pivot lug projecting from the opposite side of said body, a link member pivotally secured at one end to the opposite end of said saddle member and releasably mounted at its opposite end on said pivot lug, spaced anges projecting from said body adjacent the sides of said pivot lug, a stepped pin having a plurality of effective diameters' throughout its length, and transverse slots in said anges having different eiective diameters for slidably receiving said pin, the enlarged portiof. said pin being arranged to overlie vthe link onlsaid pivot lug tddene a'locking position and to disengage said linkito define a retracted position, the intermediate portion of said saddle member being disposed invopposing relation to said shoe. and cooperating. therewith vto secure releasably said. chokerrope therebetween. ,Y

9.y A chokerass'embly comprisingga'chokergrcpe having a terminal fitting oncne end-thereofv and a choker hook on' the opposite lend;thereofqsaid choker hook-comprising, in combination, an. elongated body, rope grippingshoe means on vone end Vofv said body, a, saddle member companionV to said an elongated fslotfin one ofsaid flanges and a reduced slot in the other of said'flangesrfor slidably receiving said pin, removable keeper means in the reduced end` of. saidpin' for retaining the latter inv locking position, shoulder stop means on the reduced end of said pinfor retaining said pin in said flangesrthe-enlarged end of said pin being Aarranged to overlie said second link to defineia locking position and to disengage said second link to define aV retracted position, the intermediate portion of said saddle member being disposed in opposing relation to said rope gripping shoe and cooperating therewith to releasably secure said choker rope therebetween.

- WILLIAM A. MEIGHAN.

`le of this patent:

l UNITED' l STATES PATENTS Number. Name Date 278,155 ,Littlefield May 22, 1883 2,416,733 erndt Mar. 4, 1947 

